2021 Wimbledon Championships...ATP 2000...London, England

[stroke]

Yahoo Sport Australia: John McEnroe causes outrage with 'disgusting' Emma Raducanu comments.

https://au.sports.yahoo.com/wimbledon-2021-john-mcenroe-disgusting-emma-raducanu-remark-234306179.html

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Yahoo Sport Australia: 'Absolute joke': Tennis world explodes over Wimbledon 'disgrace'.
https://au.sports.yahoo.com/wimbledo...223336290.html

They ought to put Medvedev last match on today, and 1st on tomorrow.

[don_budge]

Hurkacz serving for the fourth set.

[stotty]

Not a great final set for Medvedev and Hurkacz goes through. Roger will be salivating.

[stroke]

Not a great final set for Medvedev and Hurkacz goes through. Roger will be salivating.

Roger and the powers that be at Wimbledon.

[don_budge]

Insightful post that brings up some topics that I'm curious about myself.

1) Tennis' Dependence on Federer: So I'm 31 years old. I started watching tennis in 2005 and for whatever reason got hooked on Federer from the start. This is likely due to a mix of me witnessing the best years of his career, his stylish gameplay, and classy appearance off-court. I can easily say that I have no interest in watching professional tennis outside of Federer. Yeah, I happened to catch the Nadal-Djokovic semi at this year's French Open. It provided some entertainment, but yes I agree it was boring due to its repetitive nature. I very much saw how the commentators tried to make it seem like more than what it was. But back to Federer - part of the reason I joined Tennis Player is because, in addition to wanting to improve my game, I enjoy the in-depth analysis of Federer especially. Unsurprisingly, much of the membership here would feel the same. So my question is Don, although we feel this way, is this reflective in the wider tennis audience? How big of a hit will the sport take when Federer retires? Is he not retiring because of some behind the scenes politics pressuring him not to? Personally, I feel he should have retired a while ago and that broken knee was a sign from God!

2) The Viability of Serve and Volley: I've heard many older players and coaches lament the loss of serve and volley in today's game. However, I think the best players in the world, collectively as they compete with each other, figure out the optimum way to play the game in their era. With wooden rackets, this was serve and volley due to their lack of power (though I prefer the term "efficiency"). Taking the net was like taking the hill. With modern rackets this isn't the case. To put yourself in an advantageous position at the net, so as to not be a sitting duck waiting to be passed, is quite challenging. Regarding the entertainment value of baseline rallying vs serve and volley, I would say the former slightly overtakes the latter...the Sampras/Ivanisevic matches of the 90s comes to mind. You blink you miss the point, maybe even the game! Obviously enough people felt the same to the point where the grass at Wimbledon was slowed.

However, I will agree that overall I do see a degradation/simplification of the sport. Paint by numbers so to speak. The Federer Nadal rivalry, looking back now, was incredible for the sport. All the new guys like Thiem, Zverev, Medvedev....they all blend together and offhand are indistinguishable to me.

Welcome to the forum luv_all. I joined tennisplayer.net back in December of 2009. I had gotten a job here in Sweden teaching tennis and I wanted to show a student of mine a video of Don Budge's backhand which led me here. I started writing some months later as I wasn't aware of the forum at first. As you can see I have written over 6,200 posts and if I were to compile them year to year I would have 10 books called "The Year in Tennis 2010" and so on. While writing here I came up with a teaching paradigm that reads..."Bill Tilden is the book. Richard Gonzalez is the model with the Don Budge backhand. Harry Hopman is the coach. Roger Federer is the Living Proof. That sums up my existence here in one hundred words or less.

I have started a thread in nearly every single tournament that Roger Federer has played in. Written about nearly every single tennis match he has played. It seems that my alter ego may just be coming to an end. I am getting tired and I am certain that without Roger around that my time is limited. I fell in love with tennis when I was fourteen years old back in 1968...which incidentally is the same year that the game went open to professionals at the Grand Slam events. My love for the game came to an abrupt halt as in or around 1984 the game went to the new equipment. When competing early on in this transition phase against someone using this monstrosity I used to go rather wild. I felt that they were cheating and defiling the game itself. They were raping the game that I loved. That would be a good way of putting it. I really despised them and the ruling party in tennis for allowing this to happen. At the time I used to say..."they are taking the art out of the game".

It's good that you are thinking your way through this eery history of tennis of what it was and what it has become. It is good that you can see that in fact it is "Fake Tennis"...just as the mainstream news is fake. You see...the powers that be think that you are stupid. They control the information and they have even concocted a new value system for all of humanity. I frequently have written how tennis metaphors life. It does so rather consistently and this issue about the equipment is a prime example. The game is no longer the same game and there is no way to compare the players of the past with those of today. Except perhaps Roger Federer. Because he is sort of the missing link. He sort of straddled the end of the one era you mention of the incredibly short points to the present era of monolithic backcourt exchanges and monotonous ad nauseam play. They are nearly all fish out of water on the grass as they flounder in the backcourt just exactly as they do on every other surface. Did you know that three of the four "Grand Slam" tournaments used to be played on grass. It used to be called "Lawn Tennis". But not anymore.

So for me tennis is all about Roger Federer and all that I am interested in is how this story ends. We are seeing it played out before us at this Wimbledon Championships. Yesterday it was Lorenzo Sonego who provided testimony on the end of an era. An Italian clay courter that Roger just pummelled into the next week. Slowly and surely by the benefit of a very nearly perfect draw he has his teeth into the tournament and next up is another cookie cutter, big lug of a modern day player in the Polish fellow Hubert Hurkacz. Hopefully Roger has progressed far enough along in his preparation to make short work of him. For a number of reasons. But even Roger is fair game to the scrutiny of the discerning eye. To be fair we would have to dress him in all white and give him a Dunlop Maxply Fort strung with VS gut to truly say where he compares with all of the greats of the past. Including the original Don Budge, who I had the great pleasure to know for two years back in 1972 and 1973. So many years ago.

For many years I criticised Roger for not trading up in the equipment area. He was playing with 90 square inches when all of his rivals were using 100 square. Ridiculously stupid if you ask me. But when he did trade up he reeled off seven straight victories over his biggest rival..."The Great Imposter". Rafael Nadal. Size does matter and size destroyed the basic concept of the game through engineering and brainwashing. Hijacked tennis coaching. All working together insidiously to undermine what was once a beautiful and elegant sport played all over the world. On lawn...in the USA, Britain and Australia.

So in answer to your post...in a round about way. The sport is finished once Roger leaves. Of course there are young people who do not know any better and have no power of discernment. The game will continue in its dumbed down condition and who knows what they will do next. Surely they will have to try and fix it again. Actually it wasn't broken back in 1980 when Bj?rn Borg and John McEnroe were the final show and the final scene played out in Classic Tennis. But surely it is broken now. Even the players are breaking down as they try and navigate the grass scurrying around from side to side in the backcourt instead of traversing forwards like it was meant to be played. Attacking the net! There was no lack of power by the way in the old game. That would be a huge mistake to assume something so false as that. There was plenty of speed and plenty of athletes. Great athletes. Did you know that McEnroe won 77 singles titles and 77 doubles titles. Most of them with a fellow that I mentioned who is in the announcers booth at Wimbledon...Peter Fleming.

So at any rate...tennis is in a real state of "mind fuck" if you know what I mean. They have convince enough people that this is the real thing yet there are those who know that it was a crime scene in the first place when they killed the king and reinstated the imposter. But this is how it is done. Tennis metaphoring life...right to the end. The bitter, bitter end.

Viva Roger for the moment. For the time being. He is alive and kicking. Kicking ass as a matter of fact. Ask Lorenzo. Ask Richard Gasquet. Finger crossed for his next match. Should he pull through that then it goes from interesting to fascinating. Then they will pull the plug and we will wake up and go to our day jobs. Mine just happens to be playing golf now. I have been put out to pasture. On the lawn of any old golf course. How ironic. How metaphoric. Thanks for asking.

[doctorhl]

“Out, Out brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing”

Macbeth

[stotty]

The draw has really opened up for Roger. He will be playing someone who has never been to a semi before and on top of that he will have to face Roger himself. Roger can't believe his luck. But Wimbledon is like that these days. The only sure things in the draw these days are Roger himself and Novak Djokovic. You could put your house on the pair of them.

It's not beyond the realms of possibility for Roger to win Wimbledon. Things will need to open up even more and Novak would need to take a wobble, but wobbles are always possible. This assumes, of course, Roger doesn't wobble himself.

Berrettini and FAA is the quarter final I am most looking forward to. Both are in good form but I would have to pick the big Italian for that one.

[stroke]

FAA vs Berrettini is my match of the day. Roger is definitely in the hunt. He is my 2nd favorite at this point. I think the beyond belief crowd support Roger gets when he plays Novak(particularly) is what gives him the best chance to beat Novak. Novak certainly overcame it in 2019, but it was a lot to overcome. I would personally be very curious to see how Roger would deal with having to overcome that obstacle,(just to see how he deals with it), but that is obviously never going to come to fruition. I do think Novak's tough early life is a big help in this regard.

[glacierguy]

I'm concerned about Roger's unforced errors. Watched some of the Sonego match and just kept thinking 'this won't cut it against Djokovic'. Hoping for continued improvement, which has been impressive so far.

[don_budge]

2021 Wimbledon Match of the Day...Roger Federer vs. Hubert Hurkacz

All eyes on Federer. If you are even remotely interested in any other match than this one other than the ramifications of how it plays into the circumstances of Roger Federer...well, let's just say that you have taken your eye off of the ball. I would say that is a mouthful considering how much discussion there has been on the forum about watching the ball. It is not as simple as it sounds, apparently.

Roger is the master of preparation. He was measuring his steps the moment he was conscious after his surgery or his procedures...whatever it was he had. Who know? Maybe he didn't have any and it was all a ruse. What is the reality these days? Obscured on layer upon layer of deceit and misinformation. Is this Roger's rendition of the "Djokovic Limp Leg". Roger's results were rather sketchy in the build up to his return to the hallowed lawn of Wimbledon. There was that lost to "Slam Bam, Thank you M'am" Basilashvili. The loss to Alias-Augerisime. The premature pullout at the French with Berrettini in his way. Then suddenly...he is rejuvenated by the sensation of grass under his feet? Whatever it was...it seems to be working out as if it is on its own volition. Rather well scripted Mr. Swiss Maestro. If I do say so myself. You see...this is what happens when you are living in Roger's head. When you are being Roger Federer.

Novak Djokovic vs. Marton Fucsovics is not a done deal. Not yet. Old Limp Leg has another chance to pull a fast one. Lose the first two here Mr. Jokervic and you may have over extended your welcome. That was a good win over Andrey Rublev for Fucsovics but it won't be good enough to put Novak away. Rublev is hardly adapted to grass court play and the subtleties. Not that Djokovic is a "classic" by any sense of the word or by any stretch of the imagination. But he certainly has mastered the "rope a dope" on all the surfaces. He gives you the impression that he has thrown in the towel and then suddenly you are looking at match point against. Leaving you to wonder...just how the hell did I get here? He's a cagey one. He is fit and he chases everything down he wants to get to and he returns it with interest. Not a classic. But he surely knows how to get the job done. The thing his here is that Fucsovics is a full five years younger than Djokovic and Novak is reaching that line of demarcation of 35 where the legs start to show some wear and tear. Just a tad less spring back. With the Chocolate Labrador Retriever style of play that Novak fully endorses at some point he will reach an end game scenario. Much as that jerk who decided not to grace the premises with his presence...Fafa Nadal. Don't forget Marton has taken sets from Novak in both of the matches they have played so he is not in total awe of him. If he can make this a contest of fitness he may just stick around for a while past the three set minimum. But it will take some doing on both ends of this equation to get Fucsovics into the semis. But it certainly within the realm of possibilities. Slim perhaps. Unlikely even. But just a glimmer of hope...for the world. Please take him out! Please!

Karen Khachanov vs. Denis "The Menace" Shapovalov...this is perhaps the wildcard of the remaining matches. Shapovalov has a haircut and a head band to match. Two small steps in the right direction. If only he would lose that infernal, ridiculous backwards bounce of the ball between his legs. That would be another step in the direction of looking and conducting himself as a tennis player. But in these days of fake news and fake tennis he will have to do as he is. He is a menace on grass with that left handed serve. With that gigantic forehand and matching backhand. It is the loose canon that sits on his shoulders that is the key variable. He seems to have made some mental adjustments and at least he appears to be working at it. If only Nick Kyrgios were so inclined. Another loose canon. Khachanov is predictable. There won't be any surprises coming from him. But Denis is a wildcard. All of that talent equals a ton of potential. He needs the stars to line up just right to come out hitting on all eight and sustaining it through best of five. Once again...it certainly is within the realm of possibilities.

Matteo Berrittini vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime is the darling of stroke's fantasy Wimbledon eye. I will say one thing...two of the most difficult last names to spell. It seems to me that there should be one "t" and two "n"'s in Berrittini's name. Similarly it seems to me that there should be one "s" and two "m"'s in Felix's name. But that is mere lexicon speculation...the real question is that of Berrittini's forehand and serve. It may be too much for Felix at this point. Felix is quite an athletic specimen and he is going to need all of it to hang with Berrittini. Matteo has shown that he is bullish enough to pound through the grass and opponents have either been missing the point about his grip or he is just too overwhelming to get the ball down low enough to get him to rocked the ball of his frame into the stratosphere. Roger will surely try to exploit that...should he get the chance.

Roger Federer vs. Hubert Hurkacz is just too good to talk much about. One problem with the announcers in today's tennis is that they just don't know when to shut the fuck up. They come up with the most useless drivel trying to fill the void of something interesting to say. This is a problem that I don't seem to have. I will let Roger's racquet do the talking for me. Come on Roger! I think you have been laying low a bit and let it all hang out today. You have to send Berrittini a message as well as getting this job done. He's a master of the art of preparation and this is the present acid test.

[stroke]

Odds on the matches: The favorites, Denis 73% chance of winning, Matteo 78%, Novak, a whopping 97%(unbelievable), Roger 71%.

It does seem one would be paying a premium to bet on Novak here,, but that is a very small consolation if one bets on Fucsovics and Novak expectedly wins.

[stotty]

Where we all need to keep our feet on the grounds is in the facts. Everyone is hoping Roger is going to somehow going to pick his way through to the final, and why not. It's great to witness great feats during one's own lifetime, and it would surely be a great feat to to lift the trophy just shy of one's 40th birthday party.

But the facts are Roger has only won 4 slams in the last 10 years...and two of those were when 'you know who' wasn't present. Rafa's decade has't been too stellar either. Outside of the FO, Rafa has only won two other slams in the last decade...and one of those was when you know who wasn't present.

For Roger to lift the trophy, we need 'you know who' to slip up and for Roger to hold his nerve if he gets there. The only reason I feel it may be possible even in the light of the facts is that Roger is a genius, a true genius. An a genius can produce things no one expects and against the odds.

[stotty]

So I switch on the TV and who do I get straight in my ear? Martina Navratilova. That's one horrible voice in your ear for an entire afternoon, plus she talks nonsense and is incredibly big-headed. I shall have to find some other coverage...

[stotty]

Novak seems to be on cruise control. Shapovalov, at one set up, proving it's great to be a lefty on grass.